Scaffold-jack.



L. GAULTON.

SGAFFOLD JACK. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 27, 1909.

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COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH cm, WASHINGTON, D. c.

UfNllTED @TATES PATEN T @FFTCE.

LESLIE GAULTON, 0F NE'WAB-K, NEW JERSEY.

SCAFFOLD-JAOK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application fil ed t'iarcn 2'7, 1909.

Patented July 4, 1911. Serial No. assess.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LESLIE GAULTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Scaffold-Jacks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to an improved ap paratus for supporting planking to form a scaffold for the use of mechanics, particularly masons, plasterers, and workmen in similar trades, who find it necessary in the builders trade to have scafiolding.

The device is particularly adapted for scaffolding to be used on the inside, and consists of a jack to be pliiced at each end, the scaffold jacks being placed so as to support the opposite ends of boards or planks to form a platform. The jacks are adapted to be raised and lowered at will, whereby the height of the scaffold can be gradually increased or diminished, according as the work proceeds. For instance, in case of a plasterer, who now has laborers to place wooden horses with planks across their tops, arranged in series to reach a high point, he must leave the scaffold and take off a tier, which looses considerable time, whenever the scaffold is to be lowered. In this device no time need be lost in this way, and the scaf fold can be gradually and steadily lowered whilc the work proceeds.

A still further object of theinvention is to provide a supplemental support on the jacks so that an intermediate step or platform is provided, this platform being desirable in the case of masons and similar trades where material must be constantly supplied, and the platform on which the workmen are working must be replenished by laborers with hods or similar tools.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a face view of a pair of jacks supportinga set of planks. Fig. 2 is a section on line 2, 2, in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a plan view of a supplemental support for the step or platform. Fig. 4 is a face view of one of the jacks. Fig. 5 is a broken section through one of the jacks showing the construction thereof more in detail, and Fig. 6 is a section on line 6, 6, in Fig. l, but on an enlarged scale.

Each jack consists of a sill 10 adapted to rest on the floor or ground and having arranged thereon a post 11 which is preferably made of wood, although this is not essential. An upper sill 12 is adapted to rest on the top of the post 11 and to be supported thereby when at its lowest position. The sills 10 and 12 are each supplied with a strip 13 of sheet metal having a rib lt opposed to a rib 15 fastened to the sills. Between these ribs are arranged the rollers 16, the rollers being secured on the ends of toggle levers l7 pivotally attached on their ends to each other, and being pivoted intermediate of their ends to an elevating device, as will be described hereinafter. The post 11 is equipped on one face with a pair of plates 18, behind which is adapted to slide a T-shaped strip 19 having its projecting portion provided with teeth 20. The T-iron 19 passes underneath the sill 12 and across the top of the post 11 and is connected to an apparatus on the other side of the post, as will be described hereinafter.

A bracket consisting of a pair of plates 22 projects from the post 11, being .secured thereto by means of the rivets 23, and a handle 24: is pivotally attached as at 25 to the bracket and has, on its inner end, a pawl 26 to engage the teeth 20, and it will thus be seen that by operating the handle the jack can be raised to any desired height. The face of the post 11, opposite the one on which the operating lever is attached, is provided with a pair of fixed angle irons 27 which have the parallel right-angled portions equipped with teeth 28 the angle irons being held by bolts 45 which also secure the ends 4-6 of the plates 22. These angle irons partly close the recess 29 in the post and serve to confine a channel iron 30, or any similar element, which is adapted to slide up and down inside the recess 29. The sliding bar 30 is secured to the pivotal pins or bolts 32 which also pivotally secure the toggle levers 17 intermediate of their ends. It will thus be evident that when the handle 24 is operated, the T-iron 19 and the sill 12 rise, and the toggles 17 are extended by the rollers 16 engaging the upper strip 13, and the toggles thus follow the sill 12. The joint 32 of the upper pair of levers 17 is also pulled upward and the bar 30 ascends in its recess. The lower pivotal connection 33 between the levers 17 is secured to a sliding strip 34 so as to hold it in its sliding relation with the post. On the bar'30 is arranged a block 35 from which depends a pivotally secured finger 36 having a handle 37 thereon. This finger is Wide enough to extend across the series of teeth 28 and thereby lock the jack in its elevated position, when the bar 30 is raised, maintaining the sill 12, by means of the toggles, in its elevated position until manually released and being automatically operative while the handle 24 is being reciprocated, when the operation of raising the jack is being performed. Planks 38 are placed across the upper sills 12 of the jacks and thus form the flooring of the scaffold.

In the case of plasterers or masons it is necessary to provide means for laborers depositing material that is being used on the scaffold, and when it is raised to its limit this would be impractical. To furnish means for laborers stepping up so that they can deposit material on the platform I provide parallel strips 39, these strips being adapted to rest on the outer pivot of a pair of toggle levers as at 41 to prevent the accidental misplacement of the strip 39. The other end 42 of the strip goes underneath the pivotal'pin 43 and a plank let is secured on the outer ends of the strips 39, as will be seen more particularly from Figs. 3 and 4. p The device is inexpensive and stable and is provided with means for quickly raising and lowering it, and valuable time is thus saved in the matter of keeping laborers at the work without the necessity of frequently stopping to readjust the scaffolding.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A scaffold jack comprising a bottom sill, a post arranged perpendicularly there on, sliding members on the post, means on one side of the post for actuating the slidlng members, means on the opposite side of the post for locking the sliding members, a top sill, toggle levers joined at their ends and pivoted intermediate of their ends to each other and to the sliding members, the ends of the toggle levers having rollers thereon to engage the sills and a strip adapted to rest intermediate of its ends on the outer pivot of a pair of toggle-levers and adapted to have its inner end bear on the bottom of the opposite pivot of the pair of toggle-levers and adapted to have its projecting end support a plank.

2. A scaffold jack comprising a bottom sill, a post arranged perpendicularly thereon, members arranged to slide on opposite sides of the post and being connected so as to slide in unison, a handle pivoted to the post and having means thereon for engaging the sliding member to raise the same, teeth on the post, a finger on the sliding member adapted to engage the teeth to lock the sliding member, a series of toggle levers joined intermediate of their ends to each other and to the sliding member, the ends of the series of toggle levers having rollers thereon, a top sill, ways on the top and bottom sills to receive the rollers and a strip adapted to rest intermediate of its ends on the outer pivot of a pair of toggle-levers and adapted to have its inner end bear on the bottom of the opposite pivot of the pair of toggle-levers and adapted to have its projecting end sup port a plank.

3. A scaffold jack comprising a bottom sill, a post perpendicularly arranged thereon, a T-iron arranged to slide in one side of the post, the projecting portion of the T-iron having teeth thereon, ahandle pivoted to brackets secured to the post, a pawl 011 the end of the handle for engaging the teeth to raise the T-iron, a pair of angle irons secured to the face of the post opposite the T-iron, the projecting portions of the angle irons having teeth, a sliding member arranged to slide adjacent to the angle irons and being connected to the T-iron so that they slide in unison when the T-iron is raised, a series of toggle levers having their lower ends adapted to slide on the bottom sill and being pivoted at their ends and joined intermediate of their ends to each other, means for securing the toggle levers to the sliding member, a top sill adapted to rest on the top ends of the toggle levers and a strip adapted to rest intermediate of its ends on the outer pivot of a pair of togglelevers and adapted to have its inner end bear on the bottom of the opposite pivot of the pair of toggle-levers and adapted to have its projecting end support a plank.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing, I have hereunto set my hand this 25th day Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

